Quebec Immigration Minister Yolande James has announced a new program that will facilitate the process of immigration to Quebec for international students and foreign workers.

In her announcement, Minister James cited the importance of attracting and retaining skilled workers and international students through immigration for Quebec’s economic growth.

Though specific details have yet to be released, the following information is known:

The program will actively select candidates who can best respond to Quebec’s labour market needs, as divided into three categories.

International Students: In order to retain international graduates in the province, the Minister intends to issue Certificats de sélection du Québec (CSQ) to international students who earn either a high school diploma in vocational training, a college or technical training diploma, or a university degree from an educational institution recognized by the Quebec Ministry of Education, Recreation and Sport.  Minister James highlighted the fact that these students have already settled into Quebec society and have Quebec educational certifications that Quebec employers are familiar with.  She also expects that the program will increase the number of international students who choose to study in Quebec.

Specialized temporary workers: Temporary workers who are currently working in Quebec in certain specialized sectors, such as information technology and scientific research, will also be given CSQ’s for immigration to Canada.

Immigration applicants with work experience in high-demand occupations: Quebec immigration applicants who have work experience in occupations that are considered in high-demand by the province of Quebec will have their immigration applications fast-tracked.  Quebec’s labour market is in need of applicants at all skills levels, from welders to laboratory technicians, to nurses, and aeronautical engineers.  Applicants with work experience in Quebec’s in-demand occupations have the best employment prospects and will therefore receive priority processing.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), in partnership with the Foreign Credentials Referral Office (FCRO) and The Alliance for Sector Council (TASC), has recently launched a new resource to guide Canadian employers through the process of hiring internationally-trained workers.

The Employer’s Roadmap (available at www.credentials.gc.ca) is an online tool designed to assist those Canadian employers who cannot find the employees they need among Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents, and need to bring in foreign workers to staff their growing businesses.

“This is a practical resource that employers in any sector will find useful in helping to meet their staffing needs and improve their competitiveness in a rapidly changing economy,” said the executive director of TASC, Andrew Cardozo. “The Employer’s Roadmap is exactly what is needed to make the process of hiring and retaining internationally trained workers a lot more efficient.”

Though hiring from abroad is more complicated than hiring locally, the process is not quite as complicated as many Canadian employers may think.  The goal of the Employer Roadmap is to educate employers and give them the tools they need to hire and retain workers from abroad.

Included in the Employer Roadmap are the following:

• the benefits of hiring internationally trained workers;
• how to hire and recruit them;
• how to assess qualifications (credentials and competencies);
• how to integrate and retain employees with different professional and cultural backgrounds into the work force.

“The Government of Canada is committed to improving the labour market integration of internationally trained workers – this is essential to building a strong Canada: socially, culturally and economically,” said Canada’s Immigration Minister Jason Kenney. “Employers are key partners in helping internationally trained workers find jobs in their areas of training, and this resource makes it easier for employers to assess their qualifications.”

As the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games approach, Citizenship and Immigration Canada is seeking to facilitate the admission of approximately 7000 foreign national through Regulatory amendments. VANOC, or the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, has been given the authority to register and accredit foreign nationals who are performing a specific role or function within the organization, which will allow for the admission of such nationals through deemed multiple-entry temporary resident visas, which are not subject to the normal cost-recovery fees.

These Regulatory amendments to Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations allow such admission between the dates of December 12th 2009 through March 28th 2010. They are automatically repealed on April 22nd 2010. These amendments were developed though consultations with VANOC and various Canadian government bodies, including Human Resources and Skills Development Canada; The Royal Canadian Mounted Police; Canada Border Services Agency; and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.

Given the international significance of Olympic and Paralympic Games, these amendments by Citizenship and Immigration Canada are intended to streamline and facilitate the immigration process of VANOC registered members. The consultation of the various organizations ensures that such chagnes do not have a negative impact on Canada’s immigration programs or the health safety of Canadians.

Will Kymlicka is the Queen’s University Canada Research Chair in Political Philosophy and author of several books on the topic of multiculturalism. In a recent interview Canada’s Globe and Mail news organization, he suggested that Canada has demonstrated and unprecedented level of integration of new immigrants into its society.

Some of the facts that Kymlicka points to in asserting Canada’s success with immigration include:

• that, unlike many nations promoting immigration, most Canadian immigrants move on to become citizens;
• that the children of immigrant families tend to outperform those of non-immigrant families in regard to education - an anomaly in any Western democracy;
• Canadian immigrants comprising visible minorities tend to demonstrate very high levels of pride in Canada.

Kymlicka does identify some areas in which Canada can improve its immigration integration. He suggests that facilitating the recognition of academic credentials and employment experience will help economic integration.

On 16 June 2009 Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced the introduction of new resource for employers interested in hiring overseas trained workers.

“The Government of Canada is committed to improving the labour market integration of internationally trained workers – this is essential to building a strong Canada: socially, culturally and economically,” said Minister Kenney. “Employers are key partners in helping internationally trained workers find jobs in their areas of training, and this resource makes it easier for employers to assess their qualifications.”

The Employer’s Roadmap will help employers fill vacancies and will help skilled migrants to start work in Canada more quickly.

“This is a practical resource that employers in any sector will find useful in helping to meet their staffing needs and improve their competitiveness in a rapidly changing economy,” said Andrew Cardozo, Executive Director, The Alliance of Sector Councils (TASC). “The Employer’s Roadmap is exactly what is needed to make the process of hiring and retaining internationally trained workers a lot more efficient.”

The Employer’s Roadmap deals with the following issues:

• How to hire internationally trained workers, such as how to recruit, assess and select them.
• It includes suggestions on how to integrate and retain overseas workers once they become new employees.
• Information is provided on the range of national and regional resources available across the country to support employers.

The Foreign Credentials Referral Office (FCRO), part of Citizenship and Immigration Canada, and TASC have worked together to create the Roadmap. This is just one of a number of measures that the Government of Canada has taken to help newcomers successfully integrate into the Canadian labour market.

The Canadian Government through Canada’s Economic Action Plan will also be investing $50 million over two years to provide funding for the development of a common approach to foreign credential recognition.

Canadian universities have been increasing their marketing and recruitment efforts abroad to increase foreign student numbers and to give their campus a more international outlook.

A significant increase in recent years has come from American students, who are drawn to the significant cost savings in Canada over post-secondary education in the United States.

“Canadian universities are like hidden gems,” says one American student at Dalhousie University in Halifax.  “A lot of them are Ivy League-quality schools and they are just a lot less expensive.”

Approximately 9,000 Americans studied at Canadian colleges and universities this year, up from 2,300 only 12 years ago.  At McGill University in Montreal, the number of American students has risen by 22 per cent over the past five years.  At Dalhousie, applications from American students are up 14 per cent this year.

Though Canadian tuition fees for international students are far more expensive than they are for local students, they are still tens of thousands of dollars less than the cost of private American universities and are comparable to the fees charged by state colleges to local students.

A representative of the University of Toronto attributes the tripling of applications from American students to economic and political factors, along with the value of the Canadian dollar and outreach efforts in cities such as Boston, New York, and Washington.

To study in Canada, international students are required to obtain a Canada Study Permit.

Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) Minister Diane Finley recently met with community leaders in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) to discuss the current economic situation and how plans are moving along to improve the process of assessing and recognizing foreign credentials.

The Government of Canada’s Economic Action Plan has set out $50 million over two years to develop a common approach to foreign credential recognition.  The goal is to help newcomers get their internationally-obtained education and work experience assessed more quickly so that they can work in their fields and integrate into the Canadian labour market more efficiently.

Earlier this year, provincial and territorial leaders agreed to develop a national framework by September 2009.

According to HRSDC, the $50 million investment will be used to do the following:

• Develop the principles that the federal, provincial, and territorial governments agree will guide the recognition of foreign credentials;
• Develop standards for the timely treatment of those looking to have their qualifications recognized;
• Establish the specific occupations that will be the first priority in developing recognition standards; and
• Help people who want to come to Canada begin the process of licensure and accreditation while they are still overseas.

Canadian immigration is taking measures to attract Indian students with a new pilot project which will enable students who want to study in Canada to gain student visas within just seven to ten days.

The scheme follows problems involving false documentation, with many Indian students being rejected for Canadian student visas after being duped by bogus immigration agencies. In light of this, the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi is piloting a scheme that will check for fraudulent documentation and boost the number of Indians going to study in Canada.

Jagdeep Singh, from International Educational & Career Consultants, says the Canadian High Commission is hoping to attract more Indians to move to Canada to study this year following a high rejection rate in 2008. He says the new scheme will be simplified and is intended to quickly ascertain an applicant’s “correct financial status.”

Singh says that Canada is now hoping more Indian students will choose Canada rather than going to study in the US or in Australia. He says that Canada has high quality universities and that it wants to generate more money for its economy by boosting the number of foreign students it welcomes.

Advice to students looking to obtain a Canadian student visa includes: [1] using a bona fide, reputable immigration agency with an excellent track record; [2] choosing the right course at the right educational establishment; [3] be truthful at all times and show genuine documentation. If the application is rejected because of fraudulent documentation, the chances of reversing a refused visa are very slim.

Though it is one of the three categories of federal business immigration, the Self-Employed Person category is the only one that does not require a monetary investment or a minimum personal net worth.  It is simply a fast-track option for those who have relevant experience in an occupation in art, culture, recreation, or sport, as listed by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), and have the ability to become self-employed in Canada.  It is also open to people who wish to purchase and run a farm in Canada.

Often overlooked, the Self-Employed Persons program is an important Canadian immigration option which seeks to attract foreign nationals who will make a significant contribution to cultural and athletic life in Canada.  This program was designed to build the nation’s world-class cultural and sporting talent by facilitating the immigration process for applicants through priority processing.

The list of qualifying occupations is quite extensive, going far beyond athletes, musicians, dancers, and painters.  Over 30 occupations are considered, including librarians, curators, journalists, translators, producers, composers, broadcast technicians, interior designers, graphic designers, and referees, to name a few.

Additionally, this program is a fast-track Canadian immigration option for those with the intention and ability to purchase and manage a farm in Canada.

All applicants are assessed based on their education, experience, age, English/French language ability, and adaptability, with a minimum of 35 points required.

The key to eligibility as a Self-Employed Person, however, is the applicant’s relevant experience.  A minimum of two years of experience, during the past five years before the date of application is required.  In terms of cultural activities or athletics, applicants must have either two one-year periods of self-employment in cultural or athletic activities; two one-year periods of participation at a world-class level in cultural or athletic activities; or a combination of one year of self-employment and one year of participation at a world-class level.

For those applying with respect to the purchase of a farm in Canada, two one-year periods of experience in farm management are required.

Like other Canadian immigration processes, applicants and their families will be required to pass medical examinations and security checks, as well as demonstrate that they have sufficient settlement funds to support themselves once they arrive in Canada.

Canada’s Self-Employed Persons business immigration program welcomes people who have the potential to contribute to the cultural and athletic development of the country.

The Canadian province of British Columbia (BC) is reaching out to northern Indian business owners and skilled workers interested in immigration to Canada by establishing a BC in-market business investment and skilled liaison representative in the Chandigarh region of the Punjab.

“India is one of the world’s largest and fastest growing economies and British Columbia has deep and established roots with the people of India,” stated Premier Gordon Campbell during his announcement of the new appointment.  “Establishing a BC in-market business investment and skills liaison representative meets a commitment made under our Asia-Pacific initiative to establish a full-time presence in key Asian markets - including India - to attract new business investment to BC and identify future skilled workers.”

The provincial government is investing $150,000 towards this new presence in India.

Promotional activities will seek to reach out to Indian entrepreneurs to encourage them to immigrate and create new business investments in BC under the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP).